CarsDirect.com, a multi-brand online car buying service, has announced its March 2003 Best Bargains selections. The company says this list of springtime savings invites consumers to take a closer look at Spring Break vacation travel bargains, ranging from convertibles such as the Mazda Miata, Chrysler Sebring and Ford Mustang, to vacation transports that are suitable for family-style travel. According to the company, while domestic manufacturer rebates and incentives -- including nationwide loyalty programs from GM -- continue strong, Asian manufacturers are starting to raise the stakes as well. Popular and more fuel-conscious small and mid-size SUVs like the Toyota Highlander and Hyundai Santa Fe come equipped with the highest-ever savings during March. And, just in time for families considering a domestic road trip for Spring Break, Kia joins the rebate team with an all-time high offer on the 2003 Kia Sedona minivan. Each month, CarsDirect.com says its team of pricing experts qualifies Best Bargain vehicles from a list of over 120,000 price configurations. Best Bargains choices include popular new cars, trucks and sport utility vehicles that currently offer the most attractive combination of national and regional manufacturer rebates and incentives, those that offer a historic low price point, or vehicles with prices that include other special programs. "Fewer manufacturers are offering the really big money up front this month," said Joe Cashen, director of pricing strategy, CarsDirect.com. "DaimlerChrysler's Dodge Durango is one of a small handful of models to still carry a hefty $4,500 rebate, while GM and Ford shifted gears, making their programs more complex." Cashen said that GM, for example, set the pace for this new form of gamesmanship by reducing incentives, while simultaneously introducing a combination of owner loyalty and conquest programs. "Together, these programs deliver virtually the same high level of savings as February's straight rebates, but consumers will need to be more mindful of researching all the available rebate and incentive data." To see rebates and incentives or up-front transaction prices for any of these Best Bargains, shoppers go to www.carsdirect.com, and click on the vehicle make and model of their choice. About CarsDirect.com Los Angeles-based CarsDirect.com (www.carsdirect.com) is a multi-brand online car buying service, providing new and used automobiles and related products and services, such as loan and lease financing and in-demand aftermarket products including extended warranties. CarsDirect.com says it is the first online car provider to offer visitors three distinctive car buying options: buying a new car online through the company's direct channel; being matched with a new car dealer of their choice via the CarsDirect Connect channel; or locating and purchasing a previously owned vehicle through the CarsDirect Used channel.